Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera

Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera
Monument to Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera.
Born	1520 Sevilla, Spain
Died	August 17, 1574 Santiago del Estero, Viceroyalty of Peru (Present-day Argentina)
Allegiance	Spain
Rank	Conquistador

Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera (1528 – 17 August 1574) was a Spanish Conquistador, early colonial governor over much of what today is northwestern Argentina, and founder of the city of Córdoba.

Cabrera was born in Seville, Spain, in 1528. He and an older brother, Pedro, migrated to the Viceroyalty of Perú in 1538, and following his enlistment in the Spanish Army, Jerónimo was eventually made a sergeant and stationed in the colonial nerve center of Cuzco, in 1549. He led numerous military campaigns in subsequent years, notably among them the suppression of revolts in Ica and Nazca, and following a post in the capital, Lima, he was appointed in 1571 corregidor of Potosí.

Towards the end of 1571, Cabrera was designated adelantado for the purpose of exploring uncharted territories south of Potosí. The commission was followed by his appointment as governor of Tucumán Province, which then covered most of what later became the Argentine Northwest. Stationing his office in Santiago del Estero, he organized an expedition of 100 soldiers and 40 supply wagons during 1572, and parted towards the south with the intention of creating a strategic foothold. An initial settlement, Quisquisacate, failed within days of its June 24, 1573, establishment, and on July 6, the expedition chose a location on the banks of the Suquía River, around 250 mi (400 km) south of Santiago de Estero. Given the privilege of naming the settlement, Cabrera christened it Córdoba de la Nueva Andalucía, in honor of his wife's birthplace.